Resident Assistant Deaths in Plane Crash

Four resident assistants were killed in February 1988 when their rented Beechcraft 23 single-engine plane crashed into the south bank of the French Broad River in rural Sevier County. Killed were Donald W. Smith, age 20, a junior from Morristown; Kerry E. Poole, age 22, a senior from Sale Creek in Hamilton County; Shaun Fields, age 20, a freshman from Lafayette; and Terri Lynn Papes, age 21, a sophomore from Cincinnati. Smith, who had a pilot’s license, had rented the plane. The plane had been observed doing rolls and stalls during its final moments in the air. A memorial service for the four was held in the University Center Auditorium.